OT: Online Asthma Support Group?

[Janknitz]

Does anyone know of a good online asthma support group that is similar to cpap.talk?

I'm having trouble with asthma right now and I'd really like to talk to other KNOWLEDGEABLE people with asthma about management techniques.

I found one a while ago, but it drove me up a wall. It was mostly newbies asking questions like "how do I use this puffer" and the main person answering them was telling them not to take their meds or treatments, to avoid flu and pnuemonia vaccines, and use natural supplements instead. While I have nothing against natural supplements, telling people who don't know any better to stop taking their meds was really out of line.

I'm looking for a group of intelligent, thinking people. Does it exist?

[avi123]

Janknitz, about 10 years ago my nephew died from an asthma attack at age 20. He did not agree to quit smoking.

I'll be looking for a website.

Thanks for helping me approach my DME smartly.

In the meantime:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18939721

I can have access to the following report for 24 hours for $15:

Clinical Practice

Emergency Treatment of Asthma
Stephen C. Lazarus, M.D.

N Engl J Med 2010; 363:755-764August 19, 2010

This article has no abstract; the first 100 words appear below.

Foreword

This Journal feature begins with a case vignette highlighting a common clinical problem. Evidence supporting various strategies is then presented, followed by a review of formal guidelines, when they exist. The article ends with the author's clinical recommendations.

Stage

A 46-year-old woman who has had two admissions to the intensive care unit (ICU) for asthma during the past year presents with a 4-day history of upper respiratory illness and a 6-hour history of shortness of breath and wheezing. An inhaled corticosteroid has been prescribed, but she takes it only when she has symptoms, which is rarely. She generally uses albuterol twice per day but has increased its use to six to eight times per day for the past 3 days. How should this case be managed in the emergency department?

The Clinical Problem

Asthma is one of the . . .

Disclosure forms provided by the author are available with the full text of this article at NEJM.org.

Source Information

From the Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine and the Cardiovascular Research Institute, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco.

Address reprint requests to Dr. Lazarus at the University of California, San Francisco, 505 Parnassus Ave., San Francisco, CA 94143-0111, or at lazma@ucsf.edu.

[MoonBear]

Hi,

Before cpap, my asthma was really bad and I, too, looked for a smart group and never found one. My medication was switched from a puffer Qvar to a powder Asminex at the same time I started cpap so I am not sure if my great improvement was due to either or both therapies. I do a lot of research and if I see anything, I'll copy the URL and post it here. Good luck, and feel free to write m if you want to talk to someone who has had a few very bad episodes.

Namaste,
MoonBear

[Janknitz]

I never smoked, not so much as a single puff, but both my parents had 3-pack a day habits and thought it was hilarious that wherever I was in a closed space their cigarette smoke went directly to my face. I often wonder if it was those 18 years of exposure to intense second-hand smoke that caused my asthma. I had (undiagnosed) exercise induced asthma since childhood, but didn't develop more regular symptoms until my late 40's.

When I started CPAP my asthma got much better, but it also coincided with me finally taking it seriously and taking my medications correctly. But I've just had a very bad bout of asthmatic bronchitis and I am having trouble with every day activities and being able to be around others (my biggest trigger is fragrances, and everyone seems to be reeking of them). Very frustrating. I'm on a lot of meds that were working well before and I want to see if there is something (besides throwing more medicine at it) that will help.

[BusyLyn]

The allergy/asthma genes come from my mother's side of the family. My aunt was severely asthmatic from childhood (1920s and 30s) when medicine couldn't do much to help, so when I was a child my mother had blinders on about any asthma symptoms I had. I would be one of the first in my class to get a cold and the very last one to stop coughing 3 or 4 weeks later. I also had recurrent bouts of tonsillitis and middle ear infections as well as some bouts of bronchitis and my tonsils and adenoids were finally removed when I was almost 10. I never smoked because I remember sitting in my aunt's living room with my eyes closed and the tears running down my checks because of the irritation from their smoking. But that didn't stop me from being married to a man for almost 30 years who was a 2-1/2 pack a day smoker. I hate cosmetic and fragrance departments and the soap and air freshener aisles of super markets, being behind an ill-tuned diesel truck, and being out in very cold air. I was finally diagnosed with asthma in my mid thirties, to go along with all of my allergies. Thankfully my asthma is usually well controlled, and I'm working on getting the allergies under control again as well. I'm on my fifth round of allergy shots - almost to maintenance - and my latest allergist is planning to keep me on maintenance shots forever (yea!).

After an exacerbation your lungs are still very twitchy as they heal, so even if you think you're over the attack your lungs still need some extra TLC until they decide you are ready for business as usual. I really wish there were fragrance free buildings just like no smoking ones, but there aren't, so you will have to try to avoid crowds for a while longer. Take it very easy when you are out and about - this is one time when parking close and walking slowly are activities to be praised rather than scorned. I fall back on drinking plenty of fluids - preferably warm ones like tea or soup. Long warm showers are good as well. It's frustrating I know, but you have to listen to your body and take it easy for a while longer. If all else fails after a decent period of time, you may have to go back to our doctor for a little extra help. And, of course, you can come back here anytime for commiseration!

Lyn

[Janknitz]

Thanks, Lyn. I like the idea that I am still in the healing phase and that this is not my "new normal". I have this fear that I'll end up spending the rest of my life with my life limited by this, and don't want that to be the case.